If you follow me on Instagram, you'll know that last weekend, we took our holiday trip to Disney!

We started our park days with Magic Kingdom. We planned our park days in order to do everything we wanted with the smallest crowds possible, which meant Magic Kingdom > Epcot > Hollywood Studios (we skipped Animal Kingdom this trip); it ended up working out really well for us.

we finally got a picture of the two of us in front of the castle!

Since we hit most of the things we really wanted to on our first trip, we knew what we definitely wanted to do, what we could skip, and what we might do if there was time and we felt like it. It ended up making for (mostly) a more relaxing, leisurely trip that allowed us to explore Disney World a little more than we were able to on our first trip.

I'm not going to lie, when we first walked through the breezeway and entered Main Street, U.S.A., I almost cried (especially when I saw the giant Christmas tree!).

Magic Kingdom Christmas tree

We had our first FastPass for Buzz Lightyear's Space Ranger Spin in Tomorrowland (in which I kicked Tom's butt AGAIN), but afterward, we decided to meander down Main Street, U.S.A. for awhile, which included watching the glassblower at Crystal Arts (I've always been fascinated by glassblowing!), attempting to play Sorcerer's of the Magic Kingdom (a free interactive card game around the park), and watching the Move It! Shake It! Dance and Play It! mini parade.

the glassblower at Crystal Arts making an ornament

Goofy during the Move It! Shake It! Dance and Play It! parade

On our way to Fantasyland for our lunch reservation at Be Our Guest, we finally got to see the famous Partners statue (it had been hidden during our first trip), and watched a show called Dream Along with Mickey at Cinderella Castle.

Partners

Afterward, we had our lunch at Be Our Guest, which was awesome (it's the second time we've eaten here -- the first was for breakfast -- and everything we've eaten so far has been fantastic!). We wanted to eat in the West Wing, but just like our first trip, it was full, so we ate in the Rose Gallery (we ate in the Ballroom last time).

the life-size music box in the Rose Gallery at Be Our Guest

We did Mickey's PhilharMagic (my favorite Magic Kingdom attraction!) and spent some time checking out the Tangled-themed rest area before riding It's A Small World, the Haunted Mansion, and Pirates of the Caribbean.

Rapunzel's tower

We still had some time before our last FastPass (Jungle Cruise), and I really wanted to try the LeFou's Brew at Gaston's Tavern, so we trekked back over to Fantasyland for a snack. After Jungle Cruise (which was delightfully Christmas-themed), we hurried over to the hub area to catch the Main Street Electrical Parade, Celebrate the Magic (a show displayed on Cinderella Castle), and Wishes (the fireworks show). It was insanely crowded, but it was all pretty awesome. The castle was beautiful at night, and the fireworks made me cry a little.

In order to miss the post-fireworks bus crowds, we headed back to Tomorrowland and rode the PeopleMover before heading back to Coronado Springs to grab dinner at Pepper Market, relax in our room, and get a good night's rest in preparation for our Epcot day!